UNITED
NATIONS, April
18 -- After
the Syria
humanitarian
consultations
of
the UN
Security
Council
Thursday,
Inner City
Press asked
the UN's
Valerie Amos
for more
information on
the “fifty
checkpoints”
she
cited, half
government and
half
opposition.
Amos
told Inner
City Press
that the
Syrian
government now
requires two
ministers'
letters for
every
shipment,
which will
substantially
slow
down the World
Food Program.
And
what about the
opposition or
rebels, Inner
City Press
asked. Amos
said that
passage has to
be negotiated
with each
rebel group.
How is
that going to
be fixed?
Also
taking
questions was
the
representative
of the UN's
refugee
agency,
UNHCR. Inner
City Press
asked about
the draft
General
Assembly
resolution on
which it first
reported, and
put online.
Since it would
ask for a
proposal for
internally
displaced
people in
Syria, what
would
be the
proposals of
UNCHR?
The
response was
that while
UNHRC has
already aided
-- cross
border? --
Aleppo, its
position is
that borders
should remain
open and
people
must be able
to apply for
asylum.
But
is this type
of
recommendation
the
resolution's
drafters,
including
Qatar and
Saudi Arabia,
are looking
for? Or do
they want a
call for
“safe zones”
inside Syria,
to be
militarily
enforced?
Since
Amos is now
calling for
cross-border
aid into Syria
without Syrian
government
consent, Inner
City Press
asked her why
she and the UN
have NOT
called for
that through
South Sudan
into Southern
Kordofan,
Sudan, despite
Amos and
especially
John Ging
speaking
passionately
about the
blockage of
aid there.
Here
is some of
Amos on Kordofan.
And here is
Ging,
this year.
Amos
on Thursday
indicated
if and when
she thinks
cross-border
aid is needed
in
Southern
Kordofan, she
will make that
request to the
Security
Council.
To
some this is
hard to
understand.
Has Sudan been
negotiating
reasonably? Or
is Southern
Kordofan not
as important
to the UN's
Office for the
Coordination
of
Humanitarian
Affairs? Watch
this site.
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